by Chuck Sommers
Monday, Mar 06, 2023
WCC Semifinals
Time: 9 p.m. ET
Time: 9 p.m. ET
Venue: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV
Where to watch: ESPN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: SMC -6
FanDuel: SMC -6.5
BetMGM: SMC -6.5
Caesars: SMC -6.5
Season record
BYU: 19-14
No. 17 Saint Mary's: 25-6
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BYU - Saint Mary's preview, prediction and analysis
We are on a collision course for a WCC championship game between Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga. We have to get there first, and it starts with the semifinals on Monday. It’ll begin with the Gaels taking on the BYU Cougars at the Orleans Arena.
Saint Mary’s, being the No. 2 seed in the tournament, had a bye in the first round but are coming off a 77-68 loss to Gonzaga on Feb. 25 to close the regular season. The top two teams split the season series. Because of the loss, both teams clinched a share of the regular season conference title. However the next few days unfolds will determine who gets the higher seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Logan Johnson led the Gaels with 27 points, fresh off a 29-point effort against Pacific last time out, and Aidan Mahaney was held scoreless through the first 25 minutes of the game before starting to cook in the second half. He finished with eight points.
Saint Mary’s has the talent to really make a push here. They’re the team that can make a deep tournament run when no one else really expects them to do such. And the more they get to that point of threatening the likes of Gonzaga, they might be able to get there. We’ll have to see how they handle business against a BYU team that tends to give opponents trouble this time of year.
BYU advanced to the semifinals after a 73-63 win over Loyola Marymount on Friday. That’s a significant win because of how pesky LMU has been all year. The Lions were the group that knocked off Gonzaga at home and also beat Saint Mary’s at one point. So for BYU to handle business on a neutral court against a tough team is a good result.
Rudi Williams led all scorers with 23 points and he worked hard to get there. He was just 5 of 12 from the floor, a 2 of 5 from 3, but he went 11 of 12 from the free-throw line and was clearly the key for BYU to eventually pull away from the Lions. BYU shot 52.4 percent from the floor and easily covered the 3 points they laid in this game.
This is going to be an interesting one. If you remember the last time they faced off in Las Vegas, Saint Mary’s and BYU went down the wire and Saint Mary’s won the game on a game-winner late. Then COVID happened, so a lot has changed since. But the one thing that’s for certain is the Gaels are a good team and it shouldn’t take much to get them to the finish line here.
Saint Mary’s 78, BYU 70
Projected starting lineup
BYU:
PG: Fou Traore
SG: Spencer Johnson
SF: Richie Saunders
PF: Gideon George
C: Jax Robinson
Saint Mary's:
PG: Logan Johnson
SG: Aidan Mahaney
SF: Alex Ducas
PF: Kyle Bowen
C: Mitchell Saxen
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
